The longtime chairman of the medical school’s Department of Family Medicine and the president and CEO of the Savannah health system that serves as one home base to students studying at MCG’s Southeast Campus were honored Friday by Dr. David C. Hess, dean of the Medical College of Georgia at Augusta University.
Dr. Joseph Hobbs, a 1974 graduate who also is MCG’s senior associate dean for faculty diversity and primary care, received the Professionalism Award. Paul Hinchey, president and CEO of St. Joseph’s/Candler Health System in Savannah, received the dean’s Community Advocate Award.
“Dr. Hobbs, one of our earliest black graduates, was a major driver and organizer of this year’s rightful recognition of the 50th anniversary of the desegregation of our medical school. During his entire tenure with us, he has been a tireless advocate of his alma mater and works daily to manage a diverse faculty of clinicians and educators dedicated to providing the next generation of primary care physicians,” Hess said. “Mr. Hinchey was instrumental in the development of our second regional campus and his continued support of our medical students and faculty are an essential part of our statewide mission.”
Hobbs earned a bachelor’s degree from Mercer University in 1970 before coming to MCG. After graduating from medical school, he completed a family medicine residency, including serving a year as chief resident at MCG, before joining the faculty. He has served as the department’s residency program director, inpatient service director, student education and clerkship directors, vice chair of academic affairs and associate dean for primary care, before assuming the role of chairman.
Hobbs coordinates the educational and service activities of the family medicine faculty/resident practice, a National Committee for Quality Assurance-recognized Patient-Centered Medical Home that focuses on patient-centeredness, quality and practice-based population health.
He is past president and chair of the Board of Directors of the Association of Departments of Family Medicine and is president of the Georgia Academy of Family Physicians Educational Foundation Board of Directors. He is on the editorial board of the Journal of the American Board of Family Medicine.
Hinchey was appointed as president and CEO of St. Joseph’s Hospital in Savannah in 1993. In 1997, he led the formation of St. Joseph’s/Candler by combining St. Joseph’s Hospital with Candler Hospital, also in Savannah, into a single health care system, which he now leads.
In 2002 St. Joseph’s/Candler was designated as a Magnet facility by the American Nurses Credentialing Center. The system is one of only 29 to have earned four Magnet designations. In honor of its broad-based efforts to improve the lives of the most vulnerable members of its community, St. Joseph’s/Candler is the recipient of the 2012 Foster G. McGaw Prize for Excellence in Community Service, one of the most esteemed community service honors in healthcare. In 2004 the St. Joseph’s/Candler St. Mary’s Community Center earned the prestigious Achievement Citation from the Catholic Health Association for connecting people in need with vital and life-changing services.
Hinchey served as senior vice president and Chief Operating Officer of Bon Secours-St. Joseph’s Hospital in Port Charlotte, Fla., from 1988-93. He also served as CEO for Holy Cross Hospital in West Jordan, Utah.
